A bit early I know but...

[light_sabe_r]

In Australia we're all using plastic trees. OR the lastest fashion according to realliving magazine is a stick spraypainted WHITE or GOLD. (that's too bizzare for me though)

It's the middle of summer! Pine needles and barefeet/skin don't really mix. Plus the risk of starting a fire as most of the trees are dry from drought and christmas lights... yeah...

BF and I bought our plastic tree last week. Here's hoping it'll last many years to come. We won't be putting it up until the first week of advent. (four sundays out from Christmas... It's my Irish familie's tradition)

[paigette]

I live in an apartment, so I generally use a small 3-ft plastic tree. I've collected Hallmark ornaments since I was 12 or 13, so I use those. They are random & have no pattern...though I do prefer their fairy ornament collection. There is no time schedule for putting that up....generally whenever the Christmas spirit hits me. I also put up my stocking, my boyfriends stocking & my dog's stockings (yes, they have their own stockings)

I also generally help decorate my parents house. We do this the weekend after T-giving. My parents have this huge fake tree that really is gorgeous. We decorate it with Marroon & Gold with clear lights. Decorating their house is a whole process as we seriously create a winter wonderland atmosphere--my favorite being the 6 foot Lighted Angel that goes ON THE ROOF!!

[Aggie_Ama]

We usually put up the tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. Our tree is a fake one and not a very expensive one at that. My allergies are pretty bad, so I don't want a live tree in the house. I am hoping to covince DH to buy a better looking pre-lit tree this year. We have stockings for us and really adorable ones for the dogs. Theirs look much better than ours, but isn't that how the kids are? This year we are definitely hanging lights since it is our first Christmas in a house. Last year we had a string of icicles on our apartment patio.

We are slowly eliminating our little glass ball ornaments and replacing them with sentimental ones. Each year we get one to symbolize the year.
1- First Christmas
2- Disneyworld (we went the week before Christmas)
3- Cycling Paceline (1st century)
4- New house!

I also have some that were bought by my mom my first Christmas in my first apartment. She selected ones that fit my personality. We fill in the bareness of the tree with some real pretty glass snowflake ornaments from Pier One.

[Deanna]

My husband and I have a live tree we've been bringing into the house for the last 8-9 years. When I was growing up, a friend of the family always got a mis-shapen tree, because "every tree deserves a home, even if it's ugly". I thought that was very cool. Our ornaments have primarily been gifts or passed down, so there's history behind just about every one of them. Our tree is still pretty small, but I load it up with ornaments anyway.

[Bikingmomof3]

We get our tree on Dec 1. It is usuallt about 7 feet tall, quite full with soft needles. I love lights, so DH grumbles the entire time (secretly he loves it). Then we all decorate the tree with ornaments we bought on travels, from when DH and I were children, ornamnts the boys have been given, ornaments the boys made and Old World Christmas ornaments (my fav-especially the glass clip on birds).

[7rider]

Our level of trees also vary with our moods and travel plans.
When we stay local, we'll get a live tree (or rather, slowly dying tree) and decorate it with the usual assortment of ornaments that we pull out from the box. They seem to have a nautical theme.
If we go away for the holiday - as we will this year - we put up the 4.5" falsey and put the lights on a timer. Easy-peasy.
I always put greens and lights around the front door.

[bcipam]

I start putting up my tree during the Thanksgiving holiday. It usually takes me 4 days to get it up. I bought a "fake" tree several years back. It's tough to put up but looks beautiful (I paid alot for it) and I don't have to worry about going out to buy the tree, it drying out etc. The tree is 8'. It's big. It takes lot of lights and ornaments.

Over the years I have collected many beautiful and expensive ornaments (I'm single, no kids to break them). I also make ornaments which I sell at Christmas time but alot go on the tree. Once the tree is up with lights and ornaments, you can barely see the needles or any green. I usually cover almost every inch with something.

I love having my tree up - it's so pretty!!!!!!!

I'll post a photo once I get it up this year.